This should feed through into trading in other markets, said Marwan Shurrab, vice-president and chief trader at Gulfmena Investments.

'We saw yesterday the bullish sentiment in Saudi and this is expected to fund further gains in the United Arab Emirates this week,' he added.

Abu Dhabi's index was up in seven consecutive sessions, having slumped to a three-year low earlier this month. Dubai's benchmark was up 3.9 per cent year-to-date, rallying from January 16's seven-year low.

Greece's Finance Minister, Evangelos Venizelos, said on Saturday a debt deal for his country should be signed this week - a move which would help to relieve some of the concerns around European sovereign debt and boost global stock markets.-Reuters